7 Decluttering Strategies to Help You Organize Your Space

1. The $20 rule

The first item on the list of 8 strategies for decluttering is the $20 rule. If it costs under $20, and you can replace it in under 20 minutes, go ahead and pitch it.

I have a problem with this rule as a frugal person. Twenty dollars to me is $20 toward my retirement, $20 toward my savings, or three quarters of a tank of gas. I could go on and on. Twenty dollars can go a long way if you know how to use it.

So while this may be a quick decluttering strategy, I'm not one to just throw out something that costs $20 when it’s perfectly usable.

If it's something I can sell that I don't want, I will sell it. If it's something I can give away, I will give it away. But if it's something that I might use down the line or I use occasionally, I'm going to hang on to that because I can't get anything in 20 minutes.

2. The 1 in, 1 out rule

The next item on the list of best decluttering strategies according to professional declutterers is the 1 in, 1 out rule. And the rule is if you bring 1 thing in, you take 1 thing out.

I also do not follow this rule because I rarely bring 1 thing in, and I try to think so hard and intentionally about what I do bring in since I've been at this for 4 years that I will take out hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of items before I ever bring one in.

3. The 2-minute rule

The next rule is the 2 minute rule. And that rule says basically if you can do something within 2 minutes, just do it, get it done, and then move on to the next thing.

I cannot follow this rule either. The 2-minute rule for me will totally throw me off. I am a multitasker, and I'm trying not to be. Because when I multitask, I can't get anything finished.

And I am like the person that sees something shiny and then I go there. And then I see something shiny and I go there.

So if I start on something that takes 2 minutes, I'll see something in that 2 minutes that leads me to do something else that will take 2 minutes. And next thing you know, I've started a bunch of things, but I finished none of them.

And so I really have to focus on doing whatever I'm doing before I move on to the next thing. So that 2 minute rule just makes me see like 10 more things I need to do in those 2 minutes. And if I just keep jumping around like that, I don't get anything accomplished.

4. The 90/90 rule

The fourth rule is the 90/90 rule. Now this rule is if you haven't used something in 90 days, or you're not going to use it in the next 90 days, get rid of it.

I have never used this rule either. And part of the reason is that I will find things that maybe I have not used in 90 days or maybe even a year or 2. And then I'm like, I'm going to use this now. I can still see value in using it, so I'm not going to get rid of it.

5. The 30/30 rule

The fifth rule is the 30/30 rule. Now this one is if it costs over $30, wait 30 days before you buy it. It sounds like a smart rule from the beginning.

But, I can tell you that the $30 doesn't even really come into play for me. I do wait before I buy things.

In fact, I think long and hard about buying things. When the time presents itself, or it becomes a need, then I'll look at purchasing those items harder. But I keep things on my list until that time. I don’t just buy them because the 30 days are up.

6. The 80/20 rule

The next rule is the 80/20 rule. Now the 80/20 rule says that we use 20% of our stuff 80% of the time, and to get rid of the things that are not in that 20%.

I have thought about this long and hard. So if there are things that I clearly do not use, do not want, will not use, don't think I ever have a need for it in the future, and can't give it away, I will donate it. There's no point in taking up the space or prolonging it anymore.

7. Reverse decluttering

And the last rule is reverse decluttering. This one is where you decide what you keep, and you get rid of the rest.

I have done this one on my t-shirt drawer already. I went through and decided which t-shirts were the ones that I liked and were going to wear, and I got rid of the rest. I have done this in some areas. It works really well.

Decluttering strategies

Some of these rules don't really apply when you’re frugal, or you have to interpret them a different way. But I think they're all really good concepts to think about because maybe some of them will work for you when they don't necessarily work for me.

What are you willing to get rid of? Share your response in the comments down below.